By Ruth Mantell, MarketWatch
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The number of new weekly jobless claims recently reached the highest level in two months, according to government data released Thursday, but economists caution over reading too much into volatile data around the holiday season.
The number of initial claims for unemployment benefits rose by 68,000 in the week that ended Dec. 7 to 368,000, above a consensus forecast of 335,000, according to U.S. Labor Department data. A four-week average of initial claims for regular state unemployment-insurance benefits rose 6,000 to 328,750.
Although data during the holidays can be tough to analyze, trends indicate that jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, are quite low, and that workers are gaining confidence in the labor market. The government’s recent employment report signaled that jobs have rebounded from a summer slump.
Continuing claims rose 40,000 to 2.79 million in the week that ended Nov. 30. Continuing claims reflect the number of people already receiving benefits. The four-week average of continuing claims declined 4,750 to 2.79 million, the lowest since January 2008.
